Workloads and strain process in Community Health Agents

Mirian Cristina Dos Santos Almeida,Patricia Campos Pavan Baptista,Arlete Silva

doi:10.1590/s0080-623420160000100013

Mirian Cristina Dos Santos Almeida, Patricia Campos Pavan Baptista + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/s0080-623420160000100013

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Abstract

To identify the workloads present in the work activities of community health agents (CHAs) and the resulting strain processes. A descriptive, exploratory, cross-sectional and quantitative study conducted with 137 CHAs. Data were collected through a questionnaire and interview guided by the health surveillance software called SIMOSTE (Health Monitoring System of Nursing Workers), following the ethical codes of the current law. In total, were identified 140 workloads involved in 122 strain processes, represented by the occurrence of health problems of the CHAs. The mechanical (55.00%) and biological (16.43%) loads stood out. The most common strain processes were the external causes of morbidity and mortality (62.31%) and diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue (10.66%). From the identified overloads, it became evident that all workloads are present in the work process of CHAs, highlighting the mechanical load, represented mainly by external causes of morbidity and mortality that are related to occupational accidents.

Highlights

In Brazil, the Community Health Agent (CHA) is a member of the Family Health Strategy (FHS) that is considered one of the main gateways in the health system and a priority in the consolidation and expansion of basic health care
Those who agreed signed the Informed Consent in two copies and answered a questionnaire containing sociodemographic data and workrelated data.a semi-structured interview was conducted with data from health problems related to work: presence of any disease related to the type of work performed and if the person had suffered any work-related accident as a CHA with detailed description of the accident
The workloads were quantified from the strain processes, identifying 140 workloads involved in 122 harmful incidents to the health of CHAs, evidenced by diseases and work accidents reported by the CHAs

Summary

Introduction

In Brazil, the Community Health Agent (CHA) is a member of the Family Health Strategy (FHS) that is considered one of the main gateways in the health system and a priority in the consolidation and expansion of basic health care. In the FHS, the CHAs act as links between the population and other team members. Their specific functions include the registration and monitoring through monthly household visits to all families of their microarea; guidance on the use of health services; the development of activities of health promotion, prevention of diseases and disorders, and health surveillance individually or through health education groups. The work process of CHAs requires collective cooperation of the FHS team members, aiming at improving the health conditions in the community where they operate through actions of prevention, promotion and restoration of health(1)

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